Overdesign

October 09, 2003 | View Comments (9) | Category: Design

Summary: One of the reasons simple design is hard is because we tend to overdesign everything.

When I started to become serious about design I always wanted to create the coolest website out there. I wanted a site that would get listed at all of those "coolest website of the day" type sites. I tried for months and years to reach that level of design that I could show everyone and have them say "WOW!". Usually these attempts merely ended in frustration.

As a designer nothing is more frustating then well, being frustrated. It is very easy on the web to see a site that you could only dream of creating. That is part of the problem with web design. There is always envy because someone is doing something better than you. I figured I might as well give up on this whole web design thing because I just couldn't cut it.

There was one small problem. Actually two. One I love creating websites. I love taking an idea and putting it on the screen. I also have the world's biggest ego that does not allow me to walk away from anything. Well put those two together and I had to figure a solution to my problems.

I slipped upon Jarrod's Minimalist Web Project and saw some sites that interested me greatly. Some of these sites only consisted of a logo and text, yet they looked beautiful. Looking at these sites I realized that these were the sites I could create. I admit to not being the greatest graphic designer or even a semi-good one (as this site shows), but not every site needs someone like that. I wondered why I had never come across this revelation before. Then it hit me. I was overdesigning. I was trying to go beyond my means.

Maybe you think being a web designer means you have to understand every type of design there is. I disagree. There are too many websites now and that need to built in the future to even try to understand all the different types of design let alone becoming good at all of them. Some people excel in almost all areas of design. Others are great at creating graphic collages. And still others are like me, people who really did not take an interest in design when they were growing up and maybe are more technical than creative. The point is with the web it is possible to learn great design because there are so many different kinds. You just have to make sure you do not try to reach beyond your means of design. I don't see the world in huge images, but in boxes and discreet sections. I see usability over complexity. That is my design focus and I understand that. I do push the limits of my design skills everytime I design because that is the only way to get better. However, I do not reach beyond my means. Be careful of overdesigning yourself and your sites because frustration sucks.

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Comments

#1

"I don't see the world in huge images, but in boxes and discreet sections."

Here here brother....I couldn't have said it any better. Keep up the good work.

CIAwallst

#2

Hmm. There's always a happy medium, too. That's where I prefer to be. A nice design, easy to use, but not necessarily minimalist, and definitely not overdone.

Ideally, a well-made page will share some of the functions of a well-made painting. Visual elements draw the eyes in the direction you want them to travel, until they arrive at the destination you want them to reach.

That's damned hard to do, though, since you have to incorporate text. But when you have it, it feels wonderful.

JC (http://www.thelionsweb.com/weblog)

#3

At first reading this post I quite agreed with you, mainly because I'm just like you : "half-geek, half-designer". I also tend to stop at some point working on layouts in Photoshop, wondering what else I could add up to the design. That's where the "overdesign" thing comes up.

But a second thought I had was that it looks like you're saying that a great webdesigner always creates complex websites. I don't agree : a great webdesigner is someone who does a layout that suits the client's objectives. No matter if the style is minimalistic or heavily designed.

And that is a tough thing to do.

fastclemmy (http://www.fastclemmy.com)

#4

Wow!

I love the overdesign post! You said what I have been feeling for over two years now. I've had at least a dozen attempts at building a personal site, each time with a different style, theme, colors, etc. I can't decide what I want "me" to look like to the rest of the www.

I love the new whitespace and I love the 9Rules site. Great work - keep it up!

chuck (http://www.geocities.com/chuckmallott)

#5

fastclemmy: You know that I don't believe that great complex equals great design. If not a couple reads of my past post will definitely show you my beliefs in minimalism. I do agree that a great designer design's according to the client's specs. However, every designer would interpret those specs differently. Just don't over-interpret them I guess.

chuck: Thanks man. Always great to hear kind words like that. Still looking to improve upon it though because it has a lot of improvement to go.

Scrivs (http://www.9rules.com/whitespace/)

#6

Man, this is exactly what I needed to read.

I've been wrestling with a "minimalistic" redesign of my site for the past few weeks (not that my present design is exactly complex, but as much as I liked it at the beginning, it's just not working anymore) and I'm 99% there, but have felt this "overdesign" frustration. I find it funny that it is even possible to overdesign a minimalistic site!

I've spent so much time worrying about my site design, that "WOW!" aspect that you mention, that it's affecting my interest in posting to my own site. Something is not right about that.

What's most interesting to me, when I really think about it, is that when I come across a site that has great content that keeps me coming back (like this one), the design of the site is trivial. Why then is my own design so damn important to me?

Jarrod's project has been a great help, being able to check out the plethora of minimalistic sites. I've seen so many great ideas and in some way, all of them have contributed to what I've done.

I think I'll finally be happy with what I've done with it; if not, I'll just have to commit to myself that it's not what's important, that content is king.

Jason (http://www.izzywizzy.org)

#7

Hmmm. You make minimalist design sound like second-best for not being able to cut the really cool stuff. I would say that a true minimalist design requires even greater design skills. It again comes down to the difference between plain design and minimalist design. As you know, I stress that the two shouldn't be confused. I appreciate your straightforward honesty about creative frustration, and knowing your level, but I also think it's possible to stop at a level you think you can't go beyond, and so you never do. Great designers get frustrated too, but they don't stop, they push on until they reach their goal. This is also the difference between plain design and a true minimalist style. Never be satisfied with mere plainness and think it's good enough. Many of the sites on Jarrold's minimalist list are mediocre sites, or not even minimalist, just make-weight. Truth.

Joel Biroco (http://biroco.com/)

#8

When I think of my favourite sites - by and large they are the simple ones. 37signals is a particularly good example. The logo isn't huge, there isn't a clever animated navigation and the text is large! It goes against a lot of preset ideas, but it just works.

Joel is right, minimalism isn't a second choice. Its what's right for the market. I wouldn't normally do a design like my last CSS Zen Garden submission for a real world project. I relished the chance to do something deliberately over the top (hence my wanting to call it 'Design Wankery').

In the real world, sites like 37signals and miniml.com have the most impact and will be remembered longer.

BTW - I like the style changes you're making to the site. I think the centered fixed width looks great, and adds lots of whitespace. (Hey, wait a minute...

Jon Hicks (http://exp.hicksdesign.co.uk/)

#9

Well said Jon. 37Signals specializes in usable that just happen to not look as ugly as Nielsen's. I think minimalism along with usability is the perfect fit for most websites out there. Of course minimal is a relative term.

Scrivs (http://www.9rules.com/whitespace/)

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